Ep. 59 Phantom Playmates: Tales of Imaginary Friends

Kids make everything creepier. From Black-Eyed Kids to haunted playgrounds, they’re always at the center of the strange on Kraken Cans Cast. This week, we’re circling back to childhood — specifically, imaginary friends.

Most of the time, these invisible pals are harmless — a way for kids to practice social skills and flex their imaginations. But sometimes, the line between “pretend” and “paranormal” starts to blur. What happens when your child’s invisible friend wears old-fashioned clothes, knows things they shouldn’t, or leaves scratches you can’t explain?

We’ll share our own stories of imaginary friends (including Corey’s four-year-old’s WWE-style showdown with an unseen opponent), swap unsettling Reddit tales, and then dive into one of the most famous cases of all time — the haunting of Heidi Wyrick. Her “imaginary friends” in Ellerslie, Georgia weren’t make-believe at all. They had names, faces, and gravestones.

Grab a beer and join us as we pour a pint of creepy nostalgia and explore where childhood imagination ends… and something else begins.

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